On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Center Township is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #6 of 593 in Indiana. All 2 inputs put Center Township near the top nationally; its National Register listings ranks highest.
A+
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Center Township’s overall grade.
Indiana towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Indiana town has 7.9 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Center Township’s 376 sits above most of its state (93% of Indiana towns have fewer) while its 656 historic buildings outnumber those of 98% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on two of the three inputs, so a change in either one moves the letter more than it would with three. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.7 points).
Founding year: our sources. Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
What stands out about Center Township’s past
Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.
Center Township was created in 1872 from the northern part of Jackson Township; the northern part of Center was later split off to create Union Township in 1889. The first white settler in the township was George Michaels in 1827, followed the next year by John Douglass, Matthew Bunnell and Noah Bunnell. More arrived in 1829, including the three Pence brothers who donated the land upon which the city of Frankfort was built.
As the geographic and business center of the county, numerous railroads where laid through the township and included the Monon, the Vandalia, the Toledo, St. Louis and Western, the Terre Haute, Indianapolis and Eastern, and the Kokomo.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Center Township. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.
1961Michigantown sheet · 1:24,000
U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Center Township.
Famous people
Famous people close to Center Township
Nobody well known was born in Center Township itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.
Center Township is among the most historic 1% of U.S. towns, #6 of 593 in Indiana. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
What is on the National Register in Center Township?
8 listings: 1 building, among them the Parkview Home of Clinton County (listed 2018, the first). 656 historic buildings in all.
How old are the homes in Center Township?
39% of Center Township’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.7 points), against a typical 14% for an Indiana town; the median home was built in 1953.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (1), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1903
